Racism is a byproduct of the "liberal elites" misguided attempt to assist themselves psychologically and financially it has nothing to do with the oppressed minority.Posted by estep11

Huh? Your definition is absurd and runs counter to a couple hundred years of history. Racism is the product of the uneducated masses who need an arbitrary reason to explain their own lack of individual success. They therefore oppress a minority so as to feel better about themselves and give themselves a better chance at the success that would otherwise elude them. Racism has everything to do with oppression and almost always of a minority.

In the eyes of liberal elites, only white people can be racist. That is the problem. The NBP case in Phili was dropped because blacks can't be racist towards white, especially in voter rights cases. Hispanics can't be racist when they call caucasians "hispanic haters" who want to take away their rights. This established and accepted belief by the left is destroying this country. And I am sure we will see it in the responses I get. . . . . they will sound like this "oh boo hoo you caucasians have it so tough" etc. . . . . . . That in itself is a great example. And of course, the far left calling an entire group of people (white people who lean right) racist, IS RACIST, and very offensive, and yet it is acceptable. It is a strange dynamic that is destroying this country. Posted by whatnow3

First, those are isolated cases. For the most part all hate crimes are treated equally when they aren't politicized like these ones were. Though I do agree with you that liberals have a problem here. Particularly in the academic settings where you are seeing people change the meaning of the word racism so it includes a power component (making it harder for whites to claim victimhood from racist actions). But when it comes to hate crime prosecution, the law is actually pretty good and solidly color blind.

Second, the right wing is racist. That doesn't mean every right wing person is. But the movement is filled with racists like Rush Limbaugh and Jay Severin (sorry Severin is a terrible racist if you take the blinders off and listen to his words), and it is heavily supported by hate groups. Just as much of the far left is tainted by racism as well (from bell hooks to the new black panthers). But hate speech in on the right is most troubling at the moment because it is giving rise to militias again.

Liberals can not debate issues because they know the hard cold fact based premises lead to conclusions that they refuse to accept;that's part of their self-deluded mental illness.So! What do they do?They try and demonize the person instead of refuting his/her arguments.Liberals are actually dumb enough to think that this ploy destroys a valid point and a true conclusion.

"But hate speech in on the right is most troubling at the moment because it is giving rise to militias again. "

Where are these supposed militias about to cause armed revolution, we have been hearing about since the 1990s? They exist almost exclusively in the fantasies of the NY Times and its moonbat leftist readers.

On the other side , violent protests and union thuggery is pretty routine coming from the Far Left.

"But hate speech in on the right is most troubling at the moment because it is giving rise to militias again. " Where are these supposed militias about to cause armed revolution, we have been hearing about since the 1990s? They exist almost exclusively in the fantasies of the NY Times and its moonbat leftist readers. On the other side , violent protests and union thuggery is pretty routine coming from the Far Left. Posted by BobinVa

No they don't. Look I am not a far left person by any stretch (particularly on military issues). And one of my deep interests is terrorism. Where do you think guys like McVeigh came from? The militia movement. The Christian Patriot and Patriot movements during the 90s produced high profile events like Oklahoma City, and the Olympic Bombing, but it also led to a number of lower profile small time attacks on government people and symbols. Just because the militias aren't centralized and probably can't stage a true revolution, doesn't mean they aren't a threat. ANd they have been on the rise since Obama took office (as has violence associate with their ideology). Look, I am just as quick to judge the left when it produces these kinds of movements (they just happen to be less robust than the rightwing movements since about the late 1970s). But don't put on blinders to something real and chalk it up to the liberal NY times. This is serious stuff being studied by people who are mostly conservative and have no real political axe to grind (go out and read some real terrorism material from guys like White and Hoffman---hardly political men). At the moment the US's biggest problem with Terrorism is from Islamic Jihadists (both homegrown and foreign), followed by right wing groups, then followed by eco-terrorists and animal rights groups.

In the eyes of liberal elites, only white people can be racist. That is the problem. The NBP case in Phili was dropped because blacks can't be racist towards white, especially in voter rights cases. Hispanics can't be racist when they call caucasians "hispanic haters" who want to take away their rights. This established and accepted belief by the left is destroying this country. And I am sure we will see it in the responses I get. . . . . they will sound like this "oh boo hoo you caucasians have it so tough" etc. . . . . . . That in itself is a great example. And of course, the far left calling an entire group of people (white people who lean right) racist, IS RACIST, and very offensive, and yet it is acceptable. It is a strange dynamic that is destroying this country. Posted by whatnow3

Spoken like a white guy. Sorry, I have seen enough real racism of white people in positions of authority against minorities without power to know that your view has it backwards. Is there reverse racism? Sure, but it amounts to very little: minorities lack power to use any racism they may have. To say this kind of racism is destroying the country is patently absurd. And racism is never acceptable by anybody. Given the real history of racism in the country, it may be more understandable for a minority to harbor such views, but it is still wrong.

Liberals can not debate issues because they know the hard cold fact based premises lead to conclusions that they refuse to accept;that's part of their self-deluded mental illness.So! What do they do?They try and demonize the person instead of refuting his/her arguments.Liberals are actually dumb enough to think that this ploy destroys a valid point and a true conclusion.Posted by sand007

You are no demon. Your argument however is erroneous as it lacks any kind of facts and represents only your limited conservative opinion. See it can be done.

In Response to Re: Racism and Right Wing : Spoken like a white guy. Sorry, I have seen enough real racism of white people in positions of authority against minorities without power to know that your view has it backwards. Is there reverse racism? Sure, but it amounts to very little: minorities lack power to use any racism they may have. To say this kind of racism is destroying the country is patently absurd. And racism is never acceptable by anybody. Given the real history of racism in the country, it may be more understandable for a minority to harbor such views, but it is still wrong.Posted by Reubenhop

See this is the kind of reasoning about power relationships that I believe gets the left into trouble and often into dangerous waters. And I think the rapidly shifting demographics of the country just don't support this idea. I am married to a woman who is in a minority group. We've encountered about an equal amount of racism toward our relationship from all groups...but that amount is very small. And she has never been discriminated against by a white person in the work place. While I think some groups like african americans experience serious disadvantages because they often start out with fewer resources, I don't think there is an awful lot of white racism in the work place these days. I just don't see it in my every day life. What I do occassionally see poor treatment of ANYONE who comes from a lower socio-economic background and still shows it in the way they speak or act. While that is wrong in my view, and shows people are quick to judge others, I don't think it is a reflection of racist thinking.

All that aside, your claim that minorities are in a weaker position and therefore don't have the "power" to effect their racism on whites is not a credible claim in my view. First, racism isn't just about power relationships (though critical studies department would have you believe that these days). No, it is about hate and mistreatment of others based on the body they were born into. A racially motivated physical attack on a white person by a black person is just as terrifying and real as when it is the other way around. We should reject racism in all its forms. Not make convoluted arguments to show its okay for some groups but not others.

In Response to Re: Racism and Right Wing : Huh? Your definition is absurd and runs counter to a couple hundred years of history. Racism is the product of the uneducated masses who need an arbitrary reason to explain their own lack of individual success. They therefore oppress a minority so as to feel better about themselves and give themselves a better chance at the success that would otherwise elude them. Racism has everything to do with oppression and almost always of a minority. Posted by Reubenhop

Unfortunately history did not start a couple of hundred years ago and please don't give the uneducated masses so much credit you seem to want to empower a group that has no control and thus is unable to manifest the central control necessary to maintain the status quo. Your failure to understand that government sponsored discrimination in the form of affirmative action is in itself no better then racism or tribalism and a device that breeds even more resentment.

his Black Panther just keeps getting more and more absurd. New Black Panther Party head Malik Zulu Shabazz burst onto the scene with some strongly-worded messages to Glenn Beck and a interview with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly and has usurped BP CEO Tony Hayward’s place as this summer’s most disliked non-celebrity in some circles. And now, video has surfaced of Shabazz praising Osama Bin Laden in 2002 for “not bowing down” to America.

Criticism from professional race-baiters does little to further the cause.

If you limit your news sources to mainstream news outlets, such as ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, or leftwing newspapers like The New York Times, you’re missing something important – news.

For instance, very few outlets chose to cover how a very solid case against Black Panther Party ruffians who were intimidating voters at a polling site during the 2008 election just got dropped by the Obama administration. A video of the same charming Black Panther was just released showing a tirade of hate speech against white people, which included telling a crowd that they would, “have to kill some crackers” and their babies.

The examiner is basically opinion and amateur articles. But I do agree the media hasn't given this story its due. On the one hand, you have fox overplaying this incident and down playing any right wing related incident, on the other you have the regular media down playing this incident and giving the appropriate amount of attention to right wing incidents.

In Response to Re: Racism and Right Wing : Unfortunately history did not start a couple of hundred years ago and please don't give the uneducated masses so much credit you seem to want to empower a group that has no control and thus is unable to manifest the central control necessary to maintain the status quo. Your failure to understand that government sponsored discrimination in the form of affirmative action is in itself no better then racism or tribalism and a device that breeds even more resentment.Posted by estep11

Affirmative action is nothing compared to the institutional racism that still exists in certain areas. No one dies from affirmative action. Many people have been killed by institutional racism. The overall racial climate is better now, but the problem of racism still exists.

In Response to Re: Racism and Right Wing : See this is the kind of reasoning about power relationships that I believe gets the left into trouble and often into dangerous waters. And I think the rapidly shifting demographics of the country just don't support this idea. I am married to a woman who is in a minority group. We've encountered about an equal amount of racism toward our relationship from all groups...but that amount is very small. And she has never been discriminated against by a white person in the work place. While I think some groups like african americans experience serious disadvantages because they often start out with fewer resources, I don't think there is an awful lot of white racism in the work place these days. I just don't see it in my every day life. What I do occassionally see poor treatment of ANYONE who comes from a lower socio-economic background and still shows it in the way they speak or act. While that is wrong in my view, and shows people are quick to judge others, I don't think it is a reflection of racist thinking. All that aside, your claim that minorities are in a weaker position and therefore don't have the "power" to effect their racism on whites is not a credible claim in my view. First, racism isn't just about power relationships (though critical studies department would have you believe that these days). No, it is about hate and mistreatment of others based on the body they were born into. A racially motivated physical attack on a white person by a black person is just as terrifying and real as when it is the other way around. We should reject racism in all its forms. Not make convoluted arguments to show its okay for some groups but not others.Posted by JaySev2010

I have to disagree. There are far more hate crimes perpetrated on minorities than the reverse precisely because of the power relationship. "There are more of us than you so...." When a white person is in the minority it can happen, but how often does that happen? Yes, it is terrifying to be the victim in either case, but the percentages indicate that a minority person is far more likely to be a victim than a white person. AND, that is not taking into account institutional racism where the majority has the political, economic or social power to keep those not like themselves out of sharing the power they maintain.

In Response to Re: Racism and Right Wing : Huh? Your definition is absurd and runs counter to a couple hundred years of history. Racism is the product of the uneducated masses who need an arbitrary reason to explain their own lack of individual success. They therefore oppress a minority so as to feel better about themselves and give themselves a better chance at the success that would otherwise elude them. Racism has everything to do with oppression and almost always of a minority. Posted by Reubenhop

It seems to be the progressive elite that organizes their thought process around race. Conservatives seem to be the colorblind in our society.

Liberals can not debate issues because they know the hard cold fact based premises lead to conclusions that they refuse to accept;that's part of their self-deluded mental illness.So! What do they do?They try and demonize the person instead of refuting his/her arguments.Liberals are actually dumb enough to think that this ploy destroys a valid point and a true conclusion.Posted by sand007

That's straight out of Roman history too. "When you have no case, abuse the plaintiff."

When you hear about "White Racism," consider this first: A black kid can walk in my white neighborhood, and the locals and police have to be veeerrryyy cautious in dealing with them. If they are even stopped, it's "Racism."

If I, a white guy, walked into a black neighborhood, especially at night but even (some) during the day, I would get myself capped. And the response about my murder would be, "well he shouldn't have been there anyways."

All of which highlights the double standard and hypocrisy of the Democrat line on Racism.

In Response to Re: Racism and Right Wing : I have to disagree. There are far more hate crimes perpetrated on minorities than the reverse precisely because of the power relationship. "There are more of us than you so...." When a white person is in the minority it can happen, but how often does that happen? Yes, it is terrifying to be the victim in either case, but the percentages indicate that a minority person is far more likely to be a victim than a white person. AND, that is not taking into account institutional racism where the majority has the political, economic or social power to keep those not like themselves out of sharing the power they maintain. Posted by Reubenhop

First, you are just wrong when you tie racism to power relationships alone. Are you telling me that if a black man stabs a white man in the street because he is white, it somehow doesn't count because the black man doesn't have any power to exercize his racism? Are you forgetting that it is illegal to discriminate? That in places where whites do have the power you speak of, they can't just willy nilly disriminate against black people without facing consequences. And you have offered no evidence, and no statistics to show how freuquent work place discrimination is.

But that doesn't even matter anyways. Hate crimes are different than discrimination, and you know it. We are talking about hate crimes here. And social power doesn't really factor in. You are dismissing criminal acts becuase you feel that the social, political and economic advantages many whites have, somehow nullify their victim status when it comes to hate crimes.

Second, look at the stats. You are wrong. Whites are the second most targeted group by a big margin for racially motivated crimes. Blacks are the first, and by an even bigger margin. Even if you consider that whites are a majority, the numbers are changing drastically. Whites are no longer the super majoriity they once were. And in terms of sheer numbers 19% of hate crimes are against whites for being white. That is a big number no matter how you slice it. And it isn't a contest here. A hate crime is a hate crime, and it is wrong.

Reuben, do yourself a favor and stop reading critical studies articles. When you talk abot vague things like institutional racism, I know you don't have an argument. That is like when someone says "there are forces that collude to deny minorities power". It is a BS argument. Yes we are living in the after effects of our racist history. And so when it comes to black people they begin with a disadvantage because of that. And because of the raw numbers and again the history, whites hold many positions of power. But this isn't a zero sum game. And we aren't actively excluding minorities from positions of power...in fact we are cutting them a break with affirmative action programs. I'll agree things aren't picture perfect. I would never say they were, but I also say things are no where near as bad as critical studies people make it. The truth is, if you look around for signs of racism all the time, you will be able to paint a bleak picture. Just like if you look around all the time for signs of a conspiracy, you will see one.

But I am telling you, I've been all over the country. I am in a mixed marriage and I come from a mixed background myself. I have pretty good antenae when it comes to racism. We still have problems with hate groups and extremist patriot groups, and we still have groups like the black panthers (and I've said that the bigger issue is the former), but on the whole America is not anything like it used to be when it comes to racism. And it is illegal to discriminate against someone when it comes to things like housing or work. Basically there isn't a whole lot of overt racism left, so critical studies folk like bell hooks got to look for covert racism.

In the eyes of liberal elites, only white people can be racist. That is the problem. The NBP case in Phili was dropped because blacks can't be racist towards white, especially in voter rights cases. Hispanics can't be racist when they call caucasians "hispanic haters" who want to take away their rights. This established and accepted belief by the left is destroying this country. And I am sure we will see it in the responses I get. . . . . they will sound like this "oh boo hoo you caucasians have it so tough" etc. . . . . . . That in itself is a great example. And of course, the far left calling an entire group of people (white people who lean right) racist, IS RACIST, and very offensive, and yet it is acceptable. It is a strange dynamic that is destroying this country.

Well said, No-bama and accurate too. Every word you wrote is true. Racism is hatred for someone based on the color of their skin, this position of power, new definition nonsense is a recent twist to keep the issue alive. The incident of voter intimidation in Philly is a concrete example of a serious double standard. If the races were reversed and black voters had been menaced by white thugs, the FBI, the DOJ, Federal Marshals and the media would've descended on the situation and it would be front page news for weeks. There would be congressional hearings and candle light vigils and the predictable appearance of Rev Al & jesse J, two race baiters who've made a living out of race, remember the Tawana Brawley hoax? Firing the incompetent Eric Holder is a beginning.Posted by whatnow3